She heard faint voices...sounded as if they came from far away. ...What were they saying?...Who were they?
She was so tired...she just wanted to sleep. And she did.
The light hurt too much. Why were they disturbing her?
With great effort, she opened her eyes. A man in a white coat? Who was he? He looked so familiar...
"Go back to sleep Arti", the man in the white coat said gently.
Arti. Who?...Oh yes, she was Arti. And with that thought she drifted back to sleep.
Arti's eyes fluttered open. She blinked – the bright white light confused her. She tried to move her head but it hurt too much. Where was she?
She moved her eyes and saw a sari-clad figure sitting in a chair next to her bed. She was leaning back and Arti could not see the face. "Ma?" she asked, unsure of what she was seeing.
Shobha opened her eyes and in a flash was next to Arti, kneeling by the bed. She passed her hand gently over Arti's head, not saying a word.
"Where am I, Ma?" Arti asked, still not in coherent thought.
"In the hospital" Shobha replied.
"What..." Arti started to say when Shobha interrupted, "Shhh. The doctor does not want you talking much right now. You need to rest. Try and sleep."
Arti tried to nod but the effort was too much. She gave it up and closed her eyes as the darkness claimed her again.
The next time she awoke, the doctor was there. Her thoughts were clearer now, and Arti recognized the man in the white coat.
"Ahmed?" she asked.
Dr. Ansari turned around. "Arti. How are you feeling now?"
She thought about that for some time and then said, "I don't know... I don't feel anything". She was puzzled.
The doctor smiled faintly at the child-like confusion on her face and in her voice. "That's the medicine. We have pumped a lot of medication into you Arti."
She didn't reply and Dr. Ansari went back to his check-up.
"Why am I in the hospital?" she asked after a while.
He stilled and then continued with his notes, not looking at her, "You have not been well. Now, sleep some more and we will talk when you feel better."
Nodding like an obedient girl, Arti closed her eyes. Dr. Ansari set the IV as the pain medicine mixed with sleep medication dripped into her veins, lulling her into a blank dreamless, painless state.
Arti awoke to Zoya's voice. She was talking softly, but the underlying urgency sharpened the tone, waking up her friend.
"It's been a month Ahmed. How much longer?" she whispered.
"Shhh Zoya, we will talk later. You are disturbing Arti," he replied. The doctor was checking her vitals while Zoya hovered next to them.
"But..." Zoya started and Arti interrupted, "The man's right Zo – stop waking me up".
"Arti!" Zoya exclaimed, rushing forward to hug her friend. But the tubes and Ahmed's extended hand stopped her. He shook his head at her, not now he mouthed.
"What happened to me Zoya? Your boyfriend won't tell me anything" Arti pouted.
Zoya and Ahmed exchanged glances. Then Zoya said, "You were sick. But now you are getting better, much better. You just need to rest a lot – you are still weak."
Arti was puzzled. She didn't remember being sick. The last thing she remembered was the party she and Prashant had been to. Prashant! Where was he?
"Where's Prashant?" she asked.
Her friends exchanged glances again. "He's...uh..." Zoya started and Ahmed said "He's busy. And now, as your doctor I am telling you to go right back to sleep."
"Again? I just woke up. I am not at all sleepy" Arti grumbled.
"Yes you are. And it's the best thing you can do right now" he retorted. The medicines had already started taking effect and Arti's eyes fluttered closed.
The next few times Arti awoke, it was always the same. Either a nurse or Dr. Ansari were always there and they would let her chat for a few minutes before the medication put her right back to sleep.
The next time Arti woke up to find Dr. Ansari in her room, she said "Are you drugging me, Ahmed?"
His head jerked up from the charts he was reviewing. Putting them aside he came over to her. He lifted her hand and checked her pulse. "How are you feeling now?"
Exasperated! Arti wanted to scream. Instead she said, the sarcasm coming through her weakened voice "Drugged. Just as you have managed to keep me."
He chuckled, surprising her. "Well, if you can be sarcastic, you are obviously feeling much better."
"So tell me – why am I here? And why do you keep drugging me?" Arti asked, her bewilderment replacing the sarcasm.
"I told you Arti, you were sick" Ahmed replied, not quite meeting her eyes.
Sick? What did that mean? What kind of 'sick'? Arti thought puzzled. The medicines still befuddled her and she tried to clear her brain, think straight. She had to remember something...something that was niggling at the edge of her memory...just out of reach.
"When can I go home?" Arti asked, changing the angle.
"As soon as you are fine" Ahmed answered. He knew exactly what she was doing – he had seen and heard all possible angles from patients over the years.
Just then the door opened and Ahmed breathed a sigh of relief.
Arti felt a wave of relief wash over her as she saw Zoya and Shobha come in. Perhaps now she could get some answers...
"Ma!" she exclaimed.
"Beta!" Shobha was surprised to see her awake. Before going to her, she turned towards Ahmed who nodded slightly.
"How are you feeling?" she asked Arti, going to stand by her and holding her hand.
"Much better. Though I still don't know why I am here..." Arti trailed off hopefully. When Shobha did not say anything, she sighed internally.
"Where is Prashant?" she asked next.
Shobha left her hand suddenly and Arti saw her shoulders tense. She was awake enough now to notice the silent exchanges occurring in the room. Something was not right...her stomach suddenly clenched in agitation. She knew...she just knew...something was very, very wrong.
"Ma? Zoya? What's going on? Will somebody tell me?" Arti asked, her agitation reflecting on to the monitors which went into overdrive.
"Ahmed? Tell me...please" Arti begged now. She felt the walls closing in and could barely breathe...
Ahmed gently but firmly moved Shobha aside and placed oxygen tubes into Arti's nose. "Breathe" he coaxed checking the monitors. As she calmed down, the beeping slowed and then stopped. As Ahmed started to move away however, he felt Arti clasp his hand tightly. "Please" she whispered, her eyes anguished.
He looked at Shobha, silently asking her permission. When she nodded, he sat down on the edge of the bed and took Arti's hands in his.
"Arti...what is the last thing you remember? Before you woke up here?" he asked.
Last thing?...the party. "Party" Arti said.
He nodded. "Anything after that? What happened after the party?"
After? Nothing...she didn't know. Arti shook her head.
Ahmed asked very gently, "Do you remember leaving the party? What happened on the way back home?"
Leaving the party...home...they didn't reach home...oh...OH...the car!!
"Prashant!! What happened to him? We had an accident... where's Prashant?" Arti said frantically, trying to pull all the tubes off.
He grabbed her hands and tried to still her. Clasping her hands tightly, placing them over her chest, he looked her straight in the eyes and said "Prashant didn't make it Arti. He died on the spot."
All the fight left her and he felt her go limp. Closing his eyes for a minute, Ahmed continued, "We could not save your baby either Arti. I am sorry, I am so sorry."
The blood drained out of her face, leaving her white and cold. She closed her eyes and a few words escaped her. Ahmed had to bend down and strain to hear the tortured words "Why did you save me?"
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Hi,
This part may have come across disjointed. I wanted to portray the scenes as Arti would have registered them - as fractured moments in time. Not sure if it came across that way; perhaps it interfered with the flow of the story. If so - my apologies.
Thank you for reading,
Kat
Arjun
Cricket
Indian Mythology
